Spring Light in Yosemite

Participant Profiles

Alyssa Skulborstad: I’m pretty new to photography and this will be my first trip to Yosemite. I’m a recent transplant to the west coast after finishing school in Michigan. I’m looking forward to learning a lot about composition and lighting in the beautiful and inspiring classroom of Yosemite Valley.

Lee Dobryden: This will be my second time to Yosemite. My first trip was with Dave and William Hartshorn in 2010, which was a wonderful trip. Photography has been an interest of mine since High School but recently I've been dedicating much more time to it and posting my photos on Instagram. I'm really looking forward to going back to Yosemite and learning from everyone. I'm from Ann Arbor, MI where I work as a computer programmer. I can't wait to breathe the fresh air and be in the mountains.

James V. Jordan: In 2010, I purchased a Nikon D300s, took it on a vacation to Patagonia a week later, and quickly realized I’d need the equivalent of a Ph.D. in cameras and photography before I’d be able to operate it. I could fill pages describing what I didn’t know but it would embarrass me.

Since then I’ve studied photography on my own, reading Ken’s website daily, always disappointed on those rare occasions when there isn’t something new posted.

The D300s was sold long ago. When I sold it, I vowed not to purchase another cropframe camera. That vow ended when I bought a D500 in early 2016. I have two otherDSLRs: D810 and D850. I also have a Panasonic GX8 along with several Olympuslenses.

I’ve taken photo workshops with Aperture Academy in Columbia Gorge, Joshua Tree, the S.F. Zoo, the Marin Headlands, and in Kenya (2014). I participated in a photo workshop in Botswana with Thom Hogan in August 2016.

I want to work with teleconverters on this trip, with help and feedback from Dave andKen. My interest in teleconverters is the weight-reduction benefit. My 300mm f/4 E plus 1.4 TC 14EIII will be f/5.6 and weigh under two pounds. My 200-500mm f/5.6 weighs 5 pounds.I’m going on a photo workshop in Bhutan this coming October and thinking a lot about what equipment I can/should leave home. And yes, I have read what Ken has to say about traveling with less and about teleconverters.

Last fall I met Ken and Dave when I was their student in their annual EasternSierras/Mono Lake photo workshop. I am very happy to have the opportunity to takethis workshop with them. They are very talented teachers, photo-tour guides, andphotographers. And terrific guys to boot.

I look forward to meeting all of you.Best, James

Bob McNeill and Sharon Reilly: Bob started his photography hobby with his dad’s Nikon S3 in elementary school, and has dabbled since then. We’re bringing a Nikon D7200 with a 10-20 ultra wide-angle and a 18-300 zoom, plus a Sony RX100 Mk IV. Sharon snaps photos with her iPhone, though she taken a picture or two back in the film days. We haven’t taken any formal photography classes. We’re looking forward to spending a few days in the park and getting a chance to see it at all times of the day. Sharon has a particular interest in the flora and fauna.

We live in Carrboro, North Carolina where the food and the art and music are all terrific and where basketball is king, since we are down the street from UNC. Bob has a company that helps law firms automate their processes. Sharon is a geriatrician and takes care of a particularly frail group of elders in a program of all-inclusive care for the elderly (PACE).

We look forward to meeting everyone on Tuesday.

Sharon and Bob on a trip to Egypt.

Lindsey Levine: Amateur/hobby photographer here and first timer to Yosemite. My dad always had a passion for photography and I always remember him having his camera when I was young. He surely passed the interest on to me!

My current love is shelter pet photography. I am the volunteer photographer for the adoptable pets at Providence Animal Center in Media, Pennsylvania. Though I love taking photos I still have so much to learn about photography. I cant wait for this opportunity to explore the park and learn more about using my camera.

Steve L. Spratt:- I grew up on the fertile, sweltering farmlands around Yuba City California, where weekends were spent working with dad (the do-it- yourselfer) landscaping the house or out in the family prune orchards. Work was hot, hard and dusty on the farms in summertime but discomfort was offset somewhat by access to all varieties of heavy equiment to operate.

In April this year, I launched www.homepreservationmanual.com AKA HPM. Thiswebsite is an exhaustive free informational resource for homeowners based uponthe successful Stewardship program offered by Home Preservation Services in LosAltos. The HPM charter is to help all homeowners be better stewards of their ownproperties. Please visit the site and share with your homeowner friends.

I carry an older beat-up Nikon D7k camera and 18-300 lens with me everywhere,but I prefer Leica film cameras. I have a few. For Yosemite I’ll bring a Nikon D850.When relaxing, I enjoy listening to vintage vinyl jazz recordings, trying to keep myancient HiFi equipment working and riding horses in Oregon with wife Italy, who isa highly respected professional barrel horse trainer and competitor. I’m lookingforward to meeting everyone and can be reached atsspratt@homepreservation.com.

Rogert Grenader: In 1990, an industrial psychologist told me I had no imagination whatsoever, and was perfect for my occupation, Sales.

I went out the next day and purchased a Minolta X-700 and several lenses, and have not looked back since. My creativity blossomed with the advent of Digital Photography. Today, I capture my vision with a Nikon D850.

Henry Matthes - Photographer: In 1954 my grandfather taught me to use his “Rolleiflex 2.8c”, next day he bought me a “Yashica A” twin lens reflex so that we could shoot together. No meters, we used the rule of 'Sunny 16" for exposure.Then we burned and dodged our images in the darkroom. I still use his 2.8c 64 years later!

You will always find a Leica Q with me. My epiphany for returning to manual simplicity came two years ago when I used a friend’s Q – Aperture, shutter, focus, ISO, and exposure compensation have direct controls without having to dive into menus – or set them to “A” for a glorious point and shoot. The DSLR and lenses are often near me when a 28mm perspective is not perfect.

Mike Stone: I am from the Chicago area. This will be my first spring trip to Yosemite; I have been to Yosemite several times but never in the spring. I am a police sergeant from a Chicago suburb and thoroughly enjoy photography in my downtime. I would consider myself a serious amateur and I am constantly looking for ways to improve myself by either going on workshops and/or learning from others.

I primarily shoot landscapes but also other types of photography. I have been on numerous trips with Dave and Ken and have always left with more knowledge and a better understanding of photography.

Dave Wyman: My mom gave me my first camera when I was seven. That was 63 years ago. I still have my first photos I made of my second grade classmates. As I grew, my interest in photography grew, too, which included a desire to document my travels in the Sierra Nevada Mountains. That eventually led a job at the the University of Southern California, where I created the Adventure Photography Program. Since then, I've conducted hundreds of photo outings for USC, UCLA, the Yosemite Conservancy and other natural history associations. I also conduct my own Image Quest photography tours. And I've authored four photo-oriented books.

Although I conduct far fewer photo trips now, I still love making pictures of nature and connecting with other photographers. And I am reputed to have taken the first documented selfie.

Visit Facebook to view the latest photos by Dave Wyman and to keep up with his more recent travels.